Days 76-79: Seattle, WA (Last days and travelling)

Long, long overdue: here is finally my last post of this amazing trip describing the last three days in Seattle.

The first thing I wanted to do in Seattle is to get all the packing material for boxing my bike sorted. Bret and DeAnne were so kind to lend me their pick-up and pointed me to some nearby bike shops. The second one already had a bike box (including some convenient packing material) which I could have. At the U-haul I bought some bubble wrap and tape. During the afternoon I made a 20min bike ride to Museum of Flight. I didn't get to visit this museum the last time I was in Seattle and was glad I could this time... awesome collection of even more awesome aircraft :) After my bike ride back I had dinner with my hosts, after which I spent the remainder of the evening packing my bike. It appeared the bike box that I got was much smaller than the one I used to fly to the US, but in the end I managed to take my bike apart far enough to squeeze it in!

The second day started with a visit to the Boeing factory. Again, one of the things I didn't get to do the last time I was here. My hosts were again kind enough to lend me their (other) car to drive up to Everett where the Boeing factory is located. The tour itself was truly fascinating... a must-do for anyone visiting Seattle. After the factory tour I visited the nearby Flying Heritage Collection, a collection of (mostly) World War II aircraft of which most still fly. On the way back to Seattle I stopped at a shopping mall to get some new sneakers (as they are much, much cheaper in the US compared to back home). After dinner again with my hosts I went to downtown Seattle during the evening. I stopped at the waterfront to enjoy the view of the setting sun and.... to enjoy my victory cigar! I had already bought the cigar in Astoria, but didn't have a good, i.e. dry, moment to enjoy it yet... until now.

The third and last day I took the bus downtown and from there I took the monorail to the Seattle Center. I decided not to go up into the Space Needle since I had already done that last time. I did visit the Experience Music Project (EPM) a large music museum focused on music from the Seattle area, such as Jimi Hendrix and Nirvana, really cool to visit. The rest of the day was easy going, walking around town, enjoying the weather and not actually doing that much at all. I treated myself to a lovely seafood dinner.

And then there it was, the final day in the US. DeAnne was so kind to drive me to the airport. At the airport I said goodbye and thanked her (and Bret) from the bottom of my heart for being such a fantastic host for the last couple of days. The checking-in of the bike was must quicker as it was in Amsterdam. The flight itself was uneventful, other than that I was siting next to a crying baby for the complete flight, which seems to be my thing when flying :P. At Schiphol I was welcomed by my mother and three of my friends (Ruud, Emil and Marc). On the one hand arriving in Amsterdam marked the end of a fantastic experience, on the other hand I was again in good-old Holland, between friends and family, which was something I missed quite a bit. We had quite some coffee and lunch at the airport, after which my mom drove me home, where I spent the rest of the day cleaning up my stuff and getting ready for tomorrow, when I'm going back to work and normal life starts again........

 

 

Day 75: Shelton, WA - Seattle, WA (150/150 + 7/7)

Today was really, really the last day of riding in the US... sniff, sniff. The weather was again pleasant and the route over rolling back roads.

Yesterday I looked up the schedule for the ferry from Bremerton to Seattle. I could just catch an earlier ferry, but I would have to hurry for that. After hurrying for a short while I decided that it actually made no sense to hurry, as a ferry later would be just as fine. The decision was backed up by a Starbucks along the road, so I took the time for a cup of coffee and a slice of cake.

When I arrived in Bremerton I now also had time to look at some of the old aircraft carriers in the naval port from a distance. I also had time now for some lunch with more coffee at the ferry terminal. The ferry had special bicycle places and was totally free for cyclists :) The ferry ride if roughly one hour across the Puget Sound was really pretty, with a nice view over the Seattle skyline.

In Seattle I called Bert and DeAnne, my hosts for the coming four nights. After about half an hour of riding through the hilly streets of Seattle I reached their house. They welcomed me and let me park my bike in the middle of the living room! After dinner Bret showed me how to find the nearest bike shops around and how to get to all the places I want to visit in and around Seattle.

It's a rather strange feeling not having to ride my tomorrow. On the other hand it's also quite liberating... guess I had my share of cycling the last (almost) eleven weeks.

Day 74: Centralia, WA - Shelton, WA (150/150 + 5/7)

The second to last day of cycling started a little later than I planned. The hotel bed was just so much more comfy than my air mattress in a damp and small tent that it was hard to get out. When I finally hit the road the first half of the day was easy going, mostly back roads, almost flat as dime and under a grey sky that was slightly less grey than the last two days.

In Elma I had a fantastic but very big lunch. Actually for the first time this trip I managed to eat to much. The first 15 miles after lunch were kinda difficult because of that. During the afternoon the skies slightly cleared and occasionally the sun even came through! Riding was mostly over rolling back roads.

In Shelton I had to go a bit off route to get to Noreen and Bob, my WarmShowers hosts for today. Bob welcomed me and showed me around. Their house is in a perfectly peaceful place on one of the most southerly parts of the Puget Sound. Bob and Noreen were very friendly and hospitable! After dinner (with ice cream) and doing my laundry I picked a chair overlooking the water and read a few chapters of my book whilst watching the seals in the bay :)

Day 73: County Line Park, WA - Centralia, WA (150/150 + 3/7)

Tonight it had been raining all night and this morning it was still raining. So that meant again packing a wet tent, this time in the rain. As I set off I wore all my warm and mostly waterproof clothes. Off course the rain stopped shortly after, so I had to take them all off again.

The first part of the route was along a very busy highway with lots of logging trucks. Some truckers were not pleased with cyclists on 'their road' and showed this by blowing their horn just as they passed... rather startling and annoying :(

Luckily after some 10 miles the route turned to much quieter, steeply rolling back roads. Though the raining had stopped, the skies would be grey all day. At the beginning of the afternoon the drizzle was turning into real rain again and I dove into a gas station for a cup of remarkably good coffee, after which the rain had luckily stopped for the rest of the day.

Initially I planned to camp at the Lewis and Clark State Park, but that would mean a short day today and a long one today and possibly again camping in the rain. Especially as it was dry right now I decided to push on untill I reached Centralia. Jesse told me yesterday that I really didn't want to stay at the RV park there, luckily I found a cheap hotel right on the route. This had the additional benefit that I could dry my clothes and especially my tent. My tent will not be used anymore during this trip, so this was a good moment to dry and pack it for the last time.

When I finally got the WiFi working I got to the task of Finding a WarmShowers host in Seattle. This had appeared to be rather difficult and I had been contacting people for almost a week now. Luckily I now found someone that would host me for the last four nights of my trip :) All that remains now is two easy days of cycling and a ferry towards Seattle, then 3 days of sightseeing in Seattle and then the flight back home.

Day 72: Fort Stevens State Park, OR - County Line Park, WA (150/150 + 1/7)

As tonight was extremely foggy and it rained slightly during the morning, my tent was wet when I packed it. Not to worry, it would dry when I would pitch it tonight... or so I thought at that moment :p.

From Fort Stevens it was a short ride into Astoria, the endpoint of the Trans America Trail! I took the very steep (18%!) road up towards the Astoria column, an old lighthouse overlooking the city. The view was supposed to be great from there, but as it was still very foggy there was no view at all, so I didn't even bother climbing up the stairs. After descending back to the waterline, the route, now the Pacific Coast Trail, led along the Astoria riverwalk, running along and over old railway tracks.

After Astoria there was a climb away from the waterline again along a busy highway. After lunch the skies seemed to have cleared a little and the west wind had picked up. As I was riding eastbound today that meant tailwind for a change :) After some more miles along the highway I had to take a ferry. The ferry appeared to be going only once an hour and my timing was crazy perfect. Truly if I would have been there only a minute later I would have missed it! First the ferry and then a bridge brought me across the Columbia River and into Washington state, the final state of this trip.

After the crossing there were only a few miles left to the campground of tonight. Just before I got to the campground it started raining and it didn't stop for a number of hours. So I had to pitch my already wet tent in the rain :(. The shower afterwards was heavenly and worth every quarter. Soon thereafter another cyclist, Jesse, who is riding the Pacific Coast Trail from Vancouver to LA and rode the Trans America Trail to LA a few years ago, approached me asking to share the site as all tent sites were occupied. When the rain stopped, we both cooked our dinner and ate together and shared experiences. After that Jesse built a fire and we spent some time sitting by the fire talking untill the rain started again.

Day 71: Nehalem Bay State Park, OR - Fort Stevens State Park, OR (149/150)

Since the weekend was over, the traffic on the coastal highway was luckily much lighter. The road was again a succession of steep climbs and descents. It was a rather foggy morning today, which gave some nice views  over the coast. After a short I reached Seaside where the route led over the promenade and I stopped for coffee.

After Seaside instead of heading straight for Astoria (the endpoint of the Trans America Trail), I headed for Fort Stevens State Park, the most northwesterly point of Oregon and a recommendation from Curt and Barbara. 

Early in the afternoon I reached the campground, which again had a perfect hiker/biker area. First thing after pitching my tent and having a shower was to head into town to do some (long overdue) laundry.

The remainder of the afternoon I spent doing some sightseeing. Using the  beautiful bike trails that led directly from the campground, I visited the historic military fort and a shipwreck on the beach. During the evening it got more and more foggy and thereby also chilly, so I had a meal and turned in early.